Structural Movement...

I'd have done exactly what you did, got a survey and gone from there. If it moved that long ago and there's no evidence of it moving again it sounds like it'll be fine. I would find out about the insurance though.

Something similar came up in our survey too last year. I actually have the PDF on my PC here and it goes 'There are signs that the property has been affected by past structural movement as evidenced by hairline cracking to the bay window. So far as can been seen from this inspection the movement appears to be longstanding and does not appear to be progressive.' Sound familiar? It didn't put us off anyway. My understanding is that it's common to see something along those lines with an older house (ours is 1930s). We reassured ourselves that it survived the blitz, so it must be fairly sound!

I think you are right to be cautious but it's not necessarily a deal breaker. You are right that even historic movement often causes a problem with insurance. If I were you, I would probably think about checking out a few of the big names to see whether they would insure. You'll probably have to speak to them on the phone rather than online. I know NFU are often reported to be good at insuring properties with historical movement but sometimes even they are funny. I would ask the sellers what they do about insurance and who they're with. It may be possible to get a quote from the existing insurer or a continuation of the existing policy. At least you can then make a informed decision about whether to go ahead and the costs.

Ultimately some buyers will be put off by historical movement but the some buyers will be put off by a busy road, downstairs bathroom, no off road parking etc. What you have described does not seem dreadful and there are probably thousands of similar properties in the same boat. It's just that the occupants probably aren't aware or have not disclosed to insurers. A difficult situation if a claim needs to be made and movement is used to avoid paying on a claim.

Hope this helps!

Thanks for the replies all. I think we'd need to get yet another survey (structural engineer) to confirm it's historical and not a problem, for our knowledge and for the insurance, but that's going to be another £300 on top, and just not sure we wana be spending around £1500 on surveys for a house that has this problem....

Just occurred to me, although you probably know this already, some sorts of structural problems make it extremely difficult to get a mortgage. If a lender is willing to lend on it, probably a good sign.

Just to add to the words of wisdom up above - you could ask the vondor to pay for the further survey and also was this picked up when they bougt the property. By law, they have to tell you. x